Katniss enjoying her trophy

 

Hall of Fame class of 2024

 With what has to be the most impressive class of talent since 1936, the Hall of Fame welcomes 8 players this year.

Over 19 seasons, Jake Cisco had 3001 hits, 549 home runs, and drove in 1801 runs. A left-handed swinger and right fielder, Jake rarely swung at a bad pitch. He had 6 seasons with more than 100 walks. In 2000 and 2001, he led the Florida Penguins to back to back world series appearances. In 2004, he won the triple crown with a .348 average, 42 homers, and 136 RBI. Jake played for the Florida Penguins, Hawaii Hounddogs, Baltimore Colts, and Mars Eyebiters.

Mighty Joe Young was born in the mountains of central Africa and raised by a human primatologist, Jill Young. As an infant gorilla, he discovered his love of baseball through his friend Bernie Carbo, and spent time in the dugout of the 1975 Boston Red Sox, learning how to catch from Carlton Fisk. This part of the story is mentioned in a book by Luis Tiant, Son of Havana. Joe Young was drafted first overall by the Las Vegas Gamblers. He hit .315 with 35 homeruns as a rookie and only got better from there. After 5 years he was traded to Baltimore, where he moved to first base. In 2009 he hit .351 with 55 homers and 153 RBI, good for a triple crown. Baltimore would win up to 106 games with Joe, but could never advance far in the playoffs. In 2011, Joe took his talents to South Beach in pursuit of a ring after manager RJ Duke guaranteed a championship and vowed to retire if he could not deliver. Joe hit .365 in his first season with the Stars, and they did indeed win the championship. Joe finished his career with 710 homers, 2101 RBI, a .322 average, and a .601 slugging percentage, the highest in league history. He was a 7 time MVP. In 2014, he won his second triple crown with a .351 average, 37 homers, and 120 RBI.

When it came to getting on base, Frank Lewis was the greatest ever. He had a .449 OBP over 18 years. Frank hit for average (.313), and drew a ton of walks with 13 seasons over 100 and a career high of 152. In addition, he was willing to take one for the team and was hit by 329 pitches. Frank won 2 MVP awards and was a 3 time world champion with the Utah Utes. After 2 years in Portland and 2 in Hollywood, Frank went to Utah where he played his last 14 seasons with manager Battletrap. Frank hit 434 homers, had 3000 hits, and scored 2016 runs. 

Roger Lewis won 297 games, 5th all-time, and struck out 4561 batters, second on the all-time list. Roger went 21-4 as a rookie, helping his team to a world series appearance. He played all 20 of his seasons with the Portland Decepticons. He was a 3 time 20 game winner. He struck out 300 batters in 2007 and 200 or more in 17 seasons. He was a 4-time Cy Young award winner and a world champion in 2004. In 2013 he threw a no-hitter against the St. Louis Robins. In the 2004 World Series, he shut out Boston in game one, allowing only one hit over 8 innings. He won his second start of that series in game 4, allowing 3 runs and striking out 8 over 7 2/3 innings. Roger swung the bat well for a pitcher, helping his cause with 31 career homers.

Adama Dunn hit 530 homeruns over 14 seasons. He hit 58 and drove in 151 for the 2007 Springfield Isotopes, winning the MVP award. After 6 seasons he joined the Louisville Sluggers. He hit another 55 homers in 2012. In 2014 he was traded late in the year to the Utah Utes, who won the World Series in 5 games over the Denver Rabbits. Dunn did not start in games 3-5 as the DH was not used in Denver, but in game 5 delivered a 2-run pinch hit double in the 6th inning to tie the game. Utah would end up winning the game by one run and clinching the series. After that season, Dunn returned to Louisville for his final 3 seasons. 

Over 17 seasons, all with the New York Cobra, Chad White had 2831 hits, 502 homers, and stole 426 bases. He was a 5 time world champion, rookie of the year in 2002, and MVP in 2009 and 2013. Chad was a 12-time gold glove winner in center field. He had tremendous range and one of the best outfield arms ever. Over his career he was 183 runs above average defensively, second among outfielders only to Peter Rabbitt. 

Paul White, the Big Show, hit 619 homers over 19 years. He played his best seasons with the Philadelphia Grays. In 2005 he hit 47 homers, and 49 in 2007. In 2010 helped the team to their only world championship. White homered in games 1 and 4 of that series. He had 100 or more RBI 7 times and 30 or more homers 13 times.

Yoda Skywalker played his entire career for the Hawaii Hounddogs. He was an all-around player in the mold of a Bobby Grich, Lou Whitaker, or Chase Utley. He had 2107 hits, 258 homers, and 197 stolen bases. He was a 3 time gold glove winner. His best season was 2011 when he hit .315 with 27 homers, 90 RBI, 200 hits, 47 doubles, and 31 steals. Hawaii however could never put the right supporting cast around him and only won 81 games that year.

The following players also received votes and will remain on the next ballot: Jason Baret, Prince Coleman, Gerald White, Rufus Anderson, Jaret Benser, Alex Maldonado, and Kenny Anderson Jr.

Manager changes

After a year where no managers were fired mid-season, 9 teams will have new leadership in the dugout next year.

Baltimore did not renew the contract of Jason Sorenson, even though he led the team to three straight winning seasons and two playoff appearances. They will turn the job over to Davey Rose, who had managed their AAA team for the last 10 years. Rose led that team to 8 consecutive first place finishes.

In Cleveland, Drew Marino's contract was not renewed, despite a turn around that led the team to the playoffs. Marino had lost over 100 games in each of his first two seasons. In 2024 the team shocked the world by leading the division for much of the year. They did slow down in the second half, lost the division to Toledo, and then lost the wild card round to Toledo. Cleveland finished the season with a 10-22 record in September and October. They will promote their AAA manager Ramon Bernal.

The Florida Penguins will search for a new manager after Gordon "Sting" Sumner retired. Sting previously managed the team in 1994, took 30 years off, and returned for one more year in 2024, finishing 76-86. He reportedly did not get along well with the team's other coaches.

Green Day fired manager Eric Rodriguez after his 4th season with the team. Three of the years ended up with losing records, however he did lead the team to their only world series appearance in 2022.

The Louisville Sluggers did not renew the contract of Walter Lewis. Lewis had managed the team for 11 seasons with a record of 845-937. Before a 73 win season in 2024, his team had winning records for the previous 5 years including a playoff run in 2020.

After 3 losing seasons in Mars, Denny Romero's contract was not renewed. He will be replaced by Kurt Rush, the former AAA skipper. Rush had managed the Syracuse team for 10 seasons with a .510 winning percentage.

The St. Louis Robins fired George Kird after missing the playoffs for the second year in a row. Kird had made the playoffs in his first two season with the team, after a 4-year run in New York where he won 3 world championships.

Toronto fired David Salazar after a 6 year runs with the team. They had a very disappointing 71-91 record in 2024.

Utah will seek a new manager as Battletrap announced his retirement. Battletrap managed Utah for 22 seasons, including 3 world championships. He previously managed the Portland Decepticons for 5 years. In his 27 year career Battletrap won 5 league pennants and 2311 games, against 2065 losses. He is second all-time in manager wins for this league. Only 5 MLB managers won more games than he did. Battletrap will likely join the Hall of Fame as soon as he is eligible.

Shockers seek new GM

 Jeffrey Lewis, the Shocker GM for the last several years, is stepping away from the post and will assume the new title of president of baseball operations.

"This isn't title inflation like most teams do, where I would be the top baseball decision maker and hire an assistant to call the GM. My only job going forward is to find the best baseball decision maker I can to run the Shockers. Once I do that, I will step aside and give the new hire full autonomy to bring a new championship to Los Angeles. I am happy to remain with the organization doing whatever Shockwave needs me to do, but my everyday duties will be less. I'm not a young jawa anymore."

World Series: Denver vs Boston

Game 1

Road Win Lifts Denver to 1-0 Lead

Carlos K Hernandez and the Denver Rabbits opened the Championship Series in brilliant fashion today, traveling to Boston and shutting out the host Beaneaters at Fenway Park 5-0 to secure an early 1-0 lead in the best-of-7 series. Hernandez, the Rabbits right-hander, threw 7.0 innings of shutout ball.

Hernandez gave Denver a solid start. The right-hander allowed no runs on 2 hits over 7 innings.

"It's a mindset," said Hernandez. "Just trying to do your job, trying to be consistent."

The next game is set to be played tomorrow at Fenway Park in Boston.

Game 2

Walker, Rabbits Sink Beaneaters Again in Game 2

With right fielder Chris Walker leading the charge, the Denver Rabbits got a road win over the Boston Beaneaters, 7-5, in Game 2 of the Championship Series today. Walker went 1 for 5 with a home run, while adding 4 RBI and scoring once at Fenway Park to help Denver take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-7 series.

The Rabbits took a 7-2 lead in the top of the sixth inning. Facing Boston hurler Bruce Wright with two outs, Walker hit a grand slam home run.

"I just tried to see the ball and put a good swing on it," said Walker.

The next game is set to be played for Thursday, October 31st , 2024 at Mile Long Stadium in Denver.

Game 3

Home Loss Shrinks Rabbits Series Lead to 2-1

Behind a bravura effort from starter Ignacio Robles, the Boston Beaneaters topped the Denver Rabbits by the score of 7-3 today and got their first win in the 2024 Championship Series. Robles threw 7.2 innings allowing 2 runs for the Beaneaters. The win narrows Boston's deficit to 2-1.

Bernardo Pineda, the 24-year old left fielder , had a direct impact on the outcome. Pineda contributed a 2-run home run in the top of the second inning to put Boston up, 5-1.

Robles called the win the result of "everyone working in tandem."

The next game is set to be played tomorrow at Mile Long Stadium in Denver.

Game 4

Almost There: Denver On Cusp of Championship Series Triumph After 4-2 Win

The Denver Rabbits defeated the Boston Beaneaters, 4-2 in Game 4 of the Championship Series today. A big contributor was second baseman Lee Thompson, who was 1-2 with a home run and a walk, while scoring 2 runs and driving in 2. The win moves Denver into a 3-1 lead in the series.

In the bottom of the third, Thompson had one of his most important at-bats: a 2-run home run off Cristobal Gonzalez that staked the Rabbits to a 2-0 lead.

Thompson attributed the win to "energy and focus on the part of everyone."

The next game is set to be played tomorrow at Mile Long Stadium in Denver.

Game 5

Rabbits Triumph in 2024 Championship Series

With a 1-0 win over the Boston Beaneaters tonight at Mile Long Stadium, the Denver Rabbits wrapped up their 1st title in team history.

Denver left little doubt who was the better club. "Team" was the word of the day as the Rabbits celebrated the culmination of their banner year in the victors clubhouse following the game.

"Hitting, pitching, fielding; those are all things you need to win, but most importantly you need a team, a team that works together toward the same collective goal," said Denver manager Brian Woods. "Our players felt that way all year and they played that way. When one guy had an off day, 24 others stepped up their game and filled the void."

A jovial mood filled the air as Denver celebrated into the night. The city's mayor said parade plans were underway and a "huge celebration" in the works.

"We're going to celebrate our team, our championship Denver Rabbits," the mayor said.

The champions completed the regular season with a first-place finish in the Major Conference Central Division and a 97-65 record.